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Making his way to the changing rooms after playing his latest fixture with his Hashtag United team, Spencer Owen is in no doubt about where he stands on the football pyramid. “I think this is one of the most exciting commercial offers outside the Premier League,” he says.

If that might seem a bold statement for someone who has just played in an amateur hack-around on a municipal pitch in north London, a match of a sort replicated across the land on any given Sunday, then there is a clue to the size of the Spencer operation in what happens as he stands outside the pavilion after the final whistle. A line of youngsters, who have spotted him as they pass the pitch, quickly gathers, forming an orderly queue to ask for his autograph. Behind them, two blokes in their twenties recognise who it is and hover for a selfie.

This video was recorded back in March 2016

“We have to keep the timing of our matches secret for now,” he explains as he poses for the snap. “Otherwise there’s a chance a lot of viewers might turn up to watch and the truth is we’re not prepared security wise for that yet.”

If that seems like the most unlikely of brags, then it is worth tapping the words “Spencer” and “FC” into YouTube’s search bar. Up will come a video of him and his team playing at Wembley Stadium, in front of a crowd of some 20,000, which had, at the time of writing, accrued 3,865,508 online views.

Hashtag United's following has been growing at quite a paceCredit:
David Rose

To put that into context, footage of Ed Balls gyrating on Strictly Come Dancing had then been seen 78,884 times, while Jeremy Corbyn’s speech to the Labour Party Conference had racked up 48,310 views. “It’s got a lot bigger in the last year or so,” Spencer says of the size of his following. “And hopefully it can continue to grow.”

All sorts of amateur footballers now post footage of their matches online, some of which gathers sizeable interest. But none compares to the 27-year-old from Chelmsford, who is this week addressing the Leaders in Football conference, filling in those in charge of the game on this rapidly growing market.

He has two main areas of interest. There is the Wembley Cup, an annual competition he arranges for YouTube footballers played at the national stadium in which he competes as Spencer FC, a loose collective he puts together for the occasion including such former luminaries as Robert Pires and Patrick Kluivert, under the management of Martin Keown. And then there is Hashtag United, a bunch of his mates, many of whom he has played with since they were at school. They take part in a league arranged in the manner of computer games such as Fifa 17 or Championship Manager.

On the Sunday we meet, Hashtag have just played their third fixture of their latest season. When the footage of the game is released on Spencer’s own YouTube channel, the hits will reach six figures within hours. The truth is, Spencer is big. “When Robert Pires played in the Wembley Cup, he brought his children down to the dressing room,” recalls his brother Seb. “They wanted to have their picture taken with Spencer.”

The Hashtag United line-upCredit:
David Rose

But Spencer is not doing all this simply to buff up his ego. With such gathering renown has come a plethora of commercial sponsors; blue-chip companies such as EE and Xbox queue up to be involved in this new footballing phenomenon. He has a kit deal with Umbro; Hashtag replica shirts are available online.

Three years on from first putting up a video of themselves in action, Spencer and Seb now work full time at the business. They are the brothers who have successfully monetised their hobby. “I wouldn’t dare suggest we were the first,” Spencer admits. “But we ’re the ones who have taken it to another level.”

And what a level it is. Unlike most YouTube amateur football videos, Hashtag matches are not filmed by a mate with a mobile patrolling the touchline.

On the day we visit there are four HD cameras recording the action, with two unmanned go-pros behind each goal. Spencer books a pitch for his matches in an athletics stadium that has a sizeable grandstand solely so his cameramen get elevated shots. Nothing is off limits for Hashtag.

Before the game begins, Spencer is filmed giving his team talk in the dressing room. It includes the announcement of a man-of-the-match award which consists of a cunning bit of paid-for product placement. The half-time team huddle is recorded in all its sweary intensity. “C’mon Hashtag, we’re ------- better than this.”

And after the game, Spencer and his team-mates are interviewed in front of their own sponsors’ board, as if they were on Match of the Day. The whole package is then edited down to a brisk 20-minute highlights show. It is an expensive process – the edit takes three days – but one Spencer reckons integral to his success. After all, the more online hits, the bigger the earnings.

The Hashtag United badgeCredit:
David Rose

“High production values do make us stand out,” he says. “But ultimately it comes down to consistency. Is the footage interesting every single time? People buy into the Hashtag story. Really it’s nothing to do with ability. It’s the narrative that appeals.”

It is a tale with significant purchase among enthusiasts who have grown up on football computer games. Mirroring computer games processes, Hashtag have embarked on an upward trajectory, trying to gain promotion through fantasy leagues.

Each season they play 10 matches. Accrue more than 18 points and they are promoted; fewer than 10 and they are relegated. So far in their three seasons, Hashtag have been twice promoted. First from a division of opponents made up of corporate sides, then from a celebrity league filled with comedians and actors in EastEnders. This season, they are playing Sunday league teams.

“The idea is, as we go up the divisions, so the competition gets tougher,” explains Spencer. “Plus there are rewards and penalties that mirror those you’d find in a computer game. If we gain promotion we can sign a new player. If we are relegated we have to lose someone.”

It is important to point out there is no one else in the league; Hashtag are the only side gaining – or losing – points. The fixtures are against invited opponents whose role is simply to provide one-off obstacles; this season they are playing sides who applied for the opportunity via the YouTube channel. But if the arrangements are contrived, there is nothing fictional about the matches.

“No, no, this is for real,” says Spencer. “We need setbacks, we need jeopardy, we need to hover on the brink. That’s what our followers are looking for. If we won every game, they’d soon get bored.”

Four HD cameras recording the actionCredit:
David Rose

The match he has just played seems real enough. While the brothers are anxious that the result remains under wraps so as not to spoil the surprise when the match goes online later this month, it is giving nothing away to say this was a game full of feisty tackles, chest-to-chest flare-ups and proper Sunday league aggression. For their fired-up opponents, playing Hashtag is clearly a highlight of the season.

“It’s as big for them as it is for us,” says Spencer. “If one of their lads scores, his goal will be watched hundreds of thousands of times online. That’s the offer we give: it’s great for both parties.”

And it appears to work. This game, of a standard which frankly can only be described as amateur, will soon be watched by far more people than attended Premier League matches at the weekend.

“Where could this lead to?” says Spencer. “Well I guess we could go all the way into the professional game. Why not? We’ve got the support. Only thing is, if we are going to compete at that level, I’ll have no chance of getting in the team.”